Journal-box lid



A ril 21, 1931. H J. STEWART JOURNAL BOX LID Filed Jan. 24, 1950 Patented Apr. 21, 1931" V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HOWARD J. STEWART, OF NEW KENSINGTON, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOB TO UNION SPRING & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA JOURNAL-BOX LID Application filed January 24, 1930. Serial No. 423,182.

My invention relates to journal-boxes for railway cars.

A j ournal-box of the type to which I have reference consists essentially of a housing to enclose the journal and bearing of a car wheel. This housing forms a reservoir for journallubricating material, and adjacent the end of the journal the housing has an I opening to aflord access for the introduction of lubricant. A cover-plate or lid is hinged to the journal-box normally to close this opening. It is, manifestly, desirable to have the lid form a liquid-tight closure for the opening of the journal-box, and to this end, instrumentalities are associated with the lid to hold it securely in closed position. Hitherto, journal-box lids have been designed to embody such instrumentalities, and they have proven more or less successful in operation. My invention resides in a ournal-box lid which is so organized with a resiliently operable lid-closing device as to provide an improved and more efficient closure for the opening of a journal-box. Simplicity of structure and cheapness of manufacture are other objects in view.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a View in plan of the journal-box lid of my invention; Fig. 2 is a view, in cross-section 30 taken on the planes indicated by the line IIII of Fig. 1, and showing the'means associated with the lid for holding it in tightly closed position.

In Fig. 2 of the drawings there'is indicated fragmentarily, and in cross-section, a journal-box 2 which is provided with the opening 3. Through this opening 3 access is had to supply lubricating material to the reservoir chamber 4 within the journal-box, and it is this opening that must be provided with a closure device or lid structure. The journal-box lid of my invention embodies a carrier member 1 which is pivotally connected to the journal-box. The carrier member 1 is formed to include hinge portions 1a.

Conveniently, a pin 5 is passed through the lug 6 which is integral with the journal-box 2, and through the hinge portions 1a to provide an articular or hinged connection of the carrier member 1 to the journal-box. Advantageously, the outer extremities of the hinge portions 1a are slit, providing semidetached strips lb which are inturned to prevent the pin 5 from moving out of its illustrated hinging osition.

The carrier mem er 1 is recessed or of hollow construction. It carries a plate member 7 which is adapted to swing with the hinged member 1 into a position of closure, as shown in Fig. 2, or into an open position. (The open position is not indicated in the drawings). In position of closure the plate member 7 lies snugly against the entire peripheral edge 30 to provide the desired liquid-tight closing of the journal-box. This plate member 7 is not rigidly secured to the carrier member 1, but it is so secured or connected to the member 1 as to permit self-adjustment on the periphery of the opening 3. That is to say, the means which interconnect the carrier member and plate member are such as to permit relative movement of these members so that (when the lid structure as a whole is moved to its position of closure) the plate member may adapt itself to the plane of the peripheral edge 3a to obtain a tight closing of the opening 3.

To the end that the plate member or lid 7 may be so self-adjustable, a bracket 8 is secured thereto, conveniently by a rivet 9. The bracket is U shaped, having its two legs 8a extending into the recess of carrier member 1. A bolt or rivet 10 is positioned in suitable holes 11 in the legs 8a of the bracket, .and is secured to the carrier member, forming a pivotal interconnection of the carrier member and the lid 7. As ma be seen in Fig. 2, this interconnection a fords adjusting movement of the lid 7 about one axis; that is, the axis of pin 11. To obtain adjusting movement about an axis at ri ht angles to the axis of pin 10, and there y to realize a slight universal movement of the lid 7, the holes 11 are formed appreciably lar er in area than the crosssectional area 0 pin 10. A space 12 results between the edges of the holes 11 and the pin, which space, together with the above mentioned axial movement afforded by the pin connection, permits the desired universal self-adjustin movement of the lid 7 on the carrier mem er 1. Manifestly, this socalled universal interconnection allows the lid member 7 to adjust itself to the plane of the periphery of opening 3, when the lid structure is swung to closed position.

Means are provided, however, to prevent the lid 7 from turning about the axis of pin 10 to extreme and undesirable positions, as it otherwise would tend to do when the bottom edge 7a of the lid is pulled outwardly to swin the lid structure as a whole to open position. These means comprise two keepers 13 which are secured to the plate member, and co-operate with an associated stop 14 which is fixed within the carrier member 1, to limit the pivotal movement of the lid 7 about the in 10. However, the keepers 13 permit su cient movement about the axis of pin 10 to render the plate member selfadjustable, as explained. The wear and tear to which a journal-box lid structure is subjected may cause, during long usage, the bracket 8 or pin 10 to fail. If, by any chance, there should be such a failure, the keepers 13 will engage the stop 14, and secure the lid 7 until the journal-box is inspected and the failure noticed.

Particularly effective means for maintaining the lid structure in open or in closed p0- sition are organized within the hollow carrier member 1. These means include a lever 15 which is advantageously formed of strip spring-steel, and, as may be seen in Fig. 2, the lever is supported intermediate its length. The lever support comprises a seat 16, which is impressed in the wall of the carrier member. The seat 16 is arcuate in cross-section, to fit the complementary seating portion 17 of the lever. This feature of construction is important; it permits the several members of the lid structure to be readily assembled, and it enables the lever to move with the desired angular or rocking motion. The lower end of the lever forms a seat for a compression spring 18, and cooperates with an opposed seat 19 to maintain the spring in its illustrated position. Seat 19 is secured in fixed relation to the carrier member 1.

The upper end of lever 15 is curved to adapt it to slide on the central portion 20 of the lug 6 which is, as above mentioned, integral with or rigidly secured to the journal-box 2. In the illustrated closed position of the lid structure, the compressed spring 18 exerts a force tending to move the lever about the seat 16. Seat 16 is in effect a fulcrum, and consequently the force of the spring causes the upper end of the lever to press against the inclining surface 20a of lug portion 20. .Manifestly, the u per end of the lever in pressing against t e surface 20a creates a torque, (the axis of the hinge-pin 5 forms the center of the torque) and forces the lid structure into tightly closed position. When the lid structure is to be opened, the lower edge 7a of the lid member is pulled outwardly and upwardly, and the structure as a whole swings about the pin 5. In such movement the upper curved end of the lever slides on the lug portion 20, and when the lid structure in this swinging movement reaches its open position, the curved end of the lever en ages the surface 20?) of the lug to hold the id structure in open position. That is, the curved end of the lever 15, due to the resultant force of spring18, presses downwardl on the surface 20b, and serves to stay the 'd structure in open position.

Although the several members of my device are particularly adapted in structure to permit them to be manufactured in a drop-forging or pressing operation, I do not confine myself to so manufacturing them. The essential parts of my lid structure may be formed of cast metal, save, of course, the spring 18. I may add, however, that it is desirable that the lever 15 be of spring steel. This is for the reason that an inherent resiliency of the lever has been found to aid the action of spring 18, and to afford a more efficient action in opening and closing the lid structure.

What I claim is:

1. In a lid structure for the opening of a journal-box, the combination of a carrier member which is pivotally connected to said journal-box, a plate member for closing said opening, means for connecting sai plate member to said carrier member, which means comprise a bracket which is secured to said plate member and extends into said carrier member wherein a pin projects through said bracket for pivotally securing the plate member to the carrier member, whereby a sufficient universal, self-adjusting' movement of the plate member relatively to said carrier member is afforded, together with means for limiting such movement.

2. In a lid structure for the opening of a journal-box, the combination of a carrier member which is pivotally connected to the journal-box, a plate member for closing said opening, means for connecting said plate member to said carrier member, which means admit of universal self-adjustment of the plate member upon the periphery of said ournal-box opening when the lid structure is in position of closure, a lever in said carrier member which lever is adapted to move angularly on a fulcrum that is located intermedlate its length, a spring seat secured to said carrier member, a spring located upon said seat and bearing against one end of said lever and tending to move such end of the lever outwardly with respect to said plate member, and means cooperating with the other end of said lever for maintaining the lid structure in closed position.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set m hand.

y HOWARD J. STEWART. 

